There was a light knock at my door.

“Go away,” I told my mom, wiping my tears.

The door opened and I was ready to yell at her when I saw it was Shea and she was holding a box of Cloud Nine Donuts. My mouth immediately watered.

“You didn’t,” I gaped in awe.

Shea shrugged, stepping in and kicking the door closed with her foot, before setting the donut box before me. She bore the red crescent moon tattoo, just as I did.

“I’m a powerful Mage now, baby. I can do whatever I want.” She smirked, indicating the donuts.

“A Mage?” I gasped.

Vulnerability crossed her features before it was gone, and then she nodded smugly.

Well this day just got crazier.

Mages were second in power to Celestials, and normally went to Fallen Academy, but if you were demon bound, then you went to Tainted Academy to learn dark magic.

“Your school?” I swallowed hard, praying she would tell me that Raphael had fought for her to train at Fallen Academy as well.

“Tainted Academy,” she confessed, in a hollow voice.

Shit. Mages who studied dark magic turned evil. They were forced to invoke demonic powers and do awful things. That was possibly worse than what happened to me.

“We’re screwed,” I stated with finality.

She popped open the box and the sugary sweet smell wafted into the air. “We’re screwed, but we have Cloud Nine donuts.”

I gave her a weak smile. This was an old joke between us. The day we met, she asked me what I missed most about living in Angel City. I’d declared Cloud Nine donuts. These weren’t normal donuts. They were filled with magic; the owner was a Light Mage, and all of the donuts had spells on them. The bliss bomb was my favorite. One bite and you were laughing hysterically for ten minutes. Shea preferred the mellow melon. Half a donut and you were sacked out for two hours. Not to mention how good they tasted. “Seriously, how did you get them?” I eyed a bliss bomb. It’s red cherry glaze was unmistakable.

The lines were hours long to buy them, and they cost a fortune. Shea had only had them once, to celebrate our sixteenth birthdays. My mom had bought just two donuts for us. She’d had to get the day off work to travel into Angel City, and I was sure she’d saved for months. It was our only present that year. I’d never seen an entire box before. It must’ve cost a grand, easily.

She smiled. “They were serving them at the banquet. I flirted with the waiter and hid a box under my dress.

Some of them looked mashed together. Now I knew why. “You’re the best,” I told her, grabbing a bliss bomb as she grabbed a bright orange one I couldn’t identify.

“Cheers.” We smacked our donuts together and took a bite. The second that tart cherry hit my tongue, I was flooded with euphoria. Joy bubbled up inside of me and I burst out laughing. Shea was chewing hers, looking perplexed.

“I can’t tell what mine does,” she said, but the second she spoke, we both cackled in laughter. Her voice sounded like she’d sucked in helium.

We spent the next hour overdosing on donuts, the effects only lasting a few minutes. We’d saved the mellow melon for last.

“Ready to chill?” she asked, breaking the lime green donut in half.

“So ready.” I wanted to sleep the day right away and worry about everything tomorrow.

We both sank our teeth into the donut and an immediate calm fell over me. I should’ve started with that one, the one thing that could tamper my buzzing anxiety.

Shea laid her head at my feet, looking up at me from the bottom of my bed.

“You have black wings,” she stated in a dreamy voice.

I figured the donuts were mixing, making her a little loopy. I was also pretty sure you had to be twenty-one to eat some of them.

“I do,” I answered as sleep beckoned me.

I was just about to drift off when Shea’s warbled voice reached me. “I won’t let you go dark, if you don’t let me,” she declared.

My throat tightened. It was my biggest fear, turning evil because the demons used me as a puppet for their bidding. Scooching down as far as I could without folding my wing, I grasped Shea’s hand.

“I’ll kill you before I see you become a Dark Mage,” I promised her.

She smiled. “Good.”

And then sleep took us both.

Chapter Three

The next morning, I was woken by my mother nudging me with her foot. I cracked open an eyelid and glanced at the clock. It was 5:00 am, not even light out.

“No,” I mumbled and rolled over, but a sharp stabbing in my back alerted me that I still had huge angel wings and couldn’t just ‘roll over’ on them.

My mom nudged me again. “Get up. A car just arrived for you from Fallen Academy,” she whispered, so she wouldn’t wake Shea. “Your classes will be from 6:00 am to noon each day, so as not to interfere with your demon work duties.”

My eyelids snapped open. “Are you kidding me?” I glared at my mom, though I knew she was just the messenger.

She shrugged. “Get showered and dressed. That boy from the stage yesterday is waiting in the car outside.”

I sat up abruptly and winced, as I realized how stiff my right wing was from lying on it all night. Lincoln’s here? In Demon City? I thought they caught fire when they crossed the border, or something like that.

My gaze went back to my wings. “How can I shower with these things?” I was still wearing my dress from last night.

She shrugged. “Figure it out. I don’t think he’s keen on waiting.”

I groaned and crossed the room quickly to my bathroom. That guy had already been on my shit list, but now he was messing with my sleep.

Awkwardly, I banged around my shower and got myself as clean as possible given the circumstances. After shrugging into skinny black cargos and tying my long blonde hair into a top knot, I stared at my T-shirt options. Nothing was going over my head, so I was going to have to step into it and bring it up. My bra was easy to fasten, but stepping into a tight gray tank top was proving difficult. I had finally pulled the straps up when my mom knocked again.

“He said he doesn’t have time to train a princess and he’s leaving,” she told me through the door.

That motherfricker. I pulled open the door, to see my mom waiting with a to-go coffee cup and bagel in hand. I grabbed the breakfast, wished her a goodbye and slipped into my boots, quickly zipping them up.

He wakes me up at 5:00 am, makes me rush through my first shower with these gigantic wings and now I’m running!

I hated running. He was going to get an earful. I burst through the door just in time to see a brand new, white SUV driving away.

He wouldn’t dare!

“Morning, Brielle,” Bernie’s sweet voice came from inside his tent.

Shit! I’d forgotten to bring him dinner last night. I chucked the bagel into the tent. “Morning. Sorry but I’m late. We’ll catch up later!” I shouted and took off, pushing into a full sprint.

Leaping into the road, I did the first thing I could think of—I chucked my coffee cup, and watched in delight as it crashed into the back window of Lincoln’s SUV, the brake lights glowing an angry red. I then walked calmly to the passenger door and jerked it open, coming face-to-face with the Celestial.

Lincoln was annoyingly gorgeous. Even now, as he glared at me with those piercing blue eyes and pursed lips, I couldn’t deny that he was extremely attractive. That didn’t stop me from giving him a piece of my mind.

“Listen, buddy, I had the worst night of my life yesterday, I’m still recovering from a Cloud Nine Donuts hangover, and I just wasted a perfectly good cup of coffee, so you need to chill out.”

The corner of his lips twitched but he remained stoic. “You listen, princess. Every minute I stay in Demon City feels like a thousand knives are tearing into my back, so get in the car or go home.”

Asshole. I reeled back in shock. Now that he mentioned it, he did look like he was in pain. I thought it was just anger at me. I guess they don’t go up in flames, they just feel like crap.

“I can’t fit in there with my wings,” I told him, crossing my arms and staring at the tiny hole he expected me to crawl into.

He rolled his eyes and leaned forward, reaching out to me. I flinched and his face softened. “I need to touch them.”

Oh. I leaned into the car and his right hand tenderly stroked the top of my left wing, sending chills down my arms. With a quick, sharp pain at my back, they were gone. Just like that.

“Now, get in,” he ordered.

And we’re back to Captain Asshole.

I climbed into the car and fastened my seat belt. “You owe me coffee.”

He just gave me a side glance, but didn’t say a word.

The car was brand new, literally still had the sticker on the side of the window. “Nice ride,” I admired.

“I’m glad you like it, because I can’t come pick you up every day. Being in this cesspool is too painful. The car is yours to use during the course of your studies. Compliments of Fallen Academy,” he told me nonchalantly.

My mouth popped open. “Say what?” The course of my training was four years.

“So technically you just threw coffee at your own car.” He smiled smugly as he turned onto the 105, which would take us into Angel City.

Jerk. He was just like the rest of them, always judging. Judging my mom for taking the slave mark, judging me for crossing over the line yesterday. I crossed my arms and decided to ignore him the rest of the way.

Ignoring my stomach growling and the lack of coffee in my system proved harder than anything.

As Angel City came into view, I found myself pondering why he’d been sent to retrieve me anyway. Was he going to be my new trainer? He was a baby. I was sure there were other Celestials who were more qualified to train me than someone with four years of experience.

“Why exactly are you my trainer?” I asked, as the car slowed at the border crossing. One look at Lincoln and the guard waved us through. The second our car crossed over, I saw some of the agitation leave Lincoln’s face, but not much.

He gave me a side glance. “I’m the only one who offered.”

I scowled. “Bullshit.”

He chuckled. “You think everyone was jumping at the chance to train a dark Celestial?”

My skin prickled at those words. “Is that what they’re calling me?”

He shrugged. “And worse.”

I stared out the window, an instant depression settling over me. My body felt heavy, numb. “What’s worse than a dark Celestial?” Dark meant evil. Basically they thought I was a flying demon.

Lincoln hesitated, as if he wanted to protect me from hearing the worst.

“Oh please. Don’t suddenly become a nice guy,” I told him, and he bristled.

“Fine. I overheard some at Fallen Academy saying you could be some kind of archdemon.”

My legs turned to Jell-O with fear. “Archdemon? What’s that?”